Thanks to NetGalley and Entangled Teen for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: Available Now

400 Pages

Synopsis: Abandoned by her family in Plague-ridden Dominion City, eighteen-year-old Lucy Fox has no choice but to rely on the kindness of the True Borns, a renegade group of genetically enhanced humans, to save her twin sister, Marot. But Nolan Storm, their mysterious leader, has his own agenda. When Storm backtracks on his promise to rescue Margot, Lucy takes her fate into her own hands and sets off for Russia with her True Born bodyguard and maybe-something-more, the lethal yet beautiful Jared Price. In Russia, there’s been whispered rumors of a Plague Cure.

While Lucy fights her magnetic attraction to Jared, anxious that his loyalty to Storm will hurt her chances of finding her sister, they quickly discover that not all is as it appears…and discovering the secrets contained in the Fox sisters’ blood before they wind up dead is just the beginning.

As they say in Dominion, sometimes it’s not you…it’s your DNA.

I’ve been looking forward to True North since I finished its predecessor, True Born, and although I think it suffers a slight case of the dreaded “sequelitis”, there were still parts I enjoyed. I think my biggest problem was that there just didn’t seem to be as much action in this as there was with the first. After the exciting conclusion in True Born, I assumed that in addiction to more action-packed fight scenes, we’d also get a better picture of Russia and how it differs from Dominion. I was also expecting more information regarding the different societal factions, as well as more revelations about the Fox sisters. While there are some more answers given about Lucy and Margot, they don’t come until near the end, and there is nothing new imparted about the Preachers or the True Borns, which left me a bit frustrated. My last complaint is in regards to Lucy and Jared’s romantic relationship, or rather the lack of one. Jared drove me absolutely up the wall with his hot and cold attitude toward her, and even when he finally explained himself, I just didn’t buy it. He reminded me too much of Edward Cullen in Twilight, (which is a whole other topic for another day).But, there were also some positive aspects to balance the negatives. Lucy, who I really liked in the previous book, continued to grow and find herself here. She was more self-confident and willing to rely on her own instincts even if it meant going against what others were telling her. I have a feeling that she’s truly going to be a force to be reckoned with. There was also a new character named Alistair who I thought was intriguing and likable, and I hope there’s much more about him in the next book. Nolan Storm, the enigmatic leader of the True Borns, came across even more interesting here, and left me wondering what his true motivations are toward Lucy and Margot. Thankfully the action did pick up a little in the second half and the ending was a satisfying set-up for the third book. While True North was a little disappointing, I’m still hopeful that the next book will regain all the excitement that True Born was filled with.

About the Author:

L.E. Sterling had an early obsession with sci-fi, fantasy and romance to which she remained faithful even through an M.A in Creative Writing and a PhD in English Literature–where she completed a thesis on magical representation. She is the author of two previous novels, the cult hit YA novel The Originals (under pen name L.E. Vollick), dubbed “the Catcher in the Rye of a new generation” by one reviewer, and the urban fantasy Pluto’s Gate. Originally hailing from Parry Sound, Ontario, L.E. spent most of her summers roaming across Canada in a van with her father, a hippie musician, her brothers and an occasional stray mutt–inspiring her writing career. She currently lives in Toronto, Ontario.